STOCKTON - County Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Bennet Omalu's curriculum vitae spans 65 pages, listing things like the discovery of a traumatic brain disease in football players, professional papers on West Nile virus and numerous autopsies in criminal cases.

Omalu is ranked among top pathologists. It's no wonder other suitors come knocking on his door.

Washington, D.C., included.

Omalu, 45, was offered the chief position investigating deaths by the District of Columbia earlier this month.

Omalu said he declined the offer and intends on remaining with the Sheriff-Coroner's office.

San Joaquin County has been extremely supportive, Omalu said, and his family has made Lodi its home.

"We've worked so well together to do very top quality work," Omalu said. "I give the sheriff the credit. I give the county (supervisors) the credit. We are way ahead of what I expected when I first got here."

Omalu gained national attention when he discovered a traumatic brain disease that causes depression and dementia-type symptoms in football players. The National Football League has said his findings are inaccurate.

Omalu, who has an extensive education background of multiple degrees, was recruited by the county in 2007.

Sheriff Steve Moore said Omalu developed new standards for procedures in the coroner's office and is assisting in the design of a new county morgue.

"He's actually saved the county a great deal of money by doing services on his own," Moore said.

Moore said he isn't surprised that Washington, D.C. sought out Omalu.

"When you have this level of quality employee, there are going to be other people who want to benefit from his services," Moore said.

Omalu was contacted by a recruiter over the summer and he went through an interview process on the advice of his sister, who is an attorney.

"I didn't want to shut the door on them," Omalu said. He was curious to see what would happen, but he didn't think he would be offered the position, he said.

"I have this really bad habit of underestimating myself," Omalu said.

Omalu considered taking the job, but his concern was making sure his wife, Perema Mugiso, 37, was happy with his decision.

"For one, she is the one who brought me here," Omalu said. And the community has become home to the couple and their two children - ages 4 and 6.

"Before I came, I was not looking for a job," Omalu said. "They made a very brilliant strategic move.

"They invited me down here for a five-day interview and asked me to bring my wife. They kept us at Wine & Roses (in Lodi), which is a beautiful hotel. They treated my wife like a princess."

"I remember when we were driving to the airport she said to me, 'Bennet, I like it here,'" Omalu said.

Omalu said his wife and a good working environment were the driving forces behind his decision to stay.

Since coming to the county, Omalu has determined cause of death in hundreds of incidents - and some of the area's most high-profile cases such as the murder of 8-year-old Sandra Cantu, whose killer, neighbor Melissa Huckaby, was sentenced to life in prison.

His testimony at times has been the most compelling evidence in court, said Deputy District Attorney Robert Himelblau.

"Dr. Bennett Omalu is considered by our office, and the local legal community as a whole, to be a most valued member of the criminal justice system," Himelblau said. "His expertise, professionalism and integrity are evident not only to law enforcement, but to every juror I have spoken to where he has testified."

In the recent trial of Jason Ross Gilley, prosecuted by Himelblau, Omalu concluded the victim, Dalene Carlson, had been executed and shot multiple times while on the ground in a cornfield. Bullets were imbedded in the dirt.

Gilley was convicted of murder with special circumstances of kidnapping and has an upcoming sentencing hearing.

"From his on-scene work in recovering Dalene Carlson's body to his painstaking and difficult autopsy of Sandra Cantu, it is clear that this county is extremely fortunate to have him and we should make every effort to keep him and then some," Himelblau said.

Omalu is featured in the PBS documentary "League of Denial: The NFL Concussion Crisis," which is based on a book by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru.

Omalu has received recognition in the medical field, but the discovery also came with a price.

At the time, Omalu was a pathologist in Pittsburgh, where he conducted an autopsy on former Steelers center Mike Webster.

Omalu said he wanted to use the knowledge to solve a problem and make a contribution to America.

His research was met with resistance and critics tried to discredit him, he said.

"I used a simple good ol' autopsy," Omalu said. "But if you look at it from the other side - the corruption of business - they made an attempt to stop the message.

"They could not. Then, they chose the strategy of destroying the messenger."

Omalu emigrated from Nigeria to the U.S. to continue his medical training at the University of Washington in Seattle. He was 26 years old.

"I flew into Seattle, I remember, Oct. 24, 1994. All I had in my pocket was $250 dollars."

Omalu poured himself into education, and since then, earned multiple degrees and studied forensic pathology, neuropathology, public health, business and other areas.

"My father indoctrinated us with the power of education," Omalu said. "I think my father recognized in the '70s that we were going into a knowledge-based economy, where your value is determined by how much you know.

"There's something about education. It wraps you and keeps you in a sphere of innocence, just pristine knowledge. No politics, just the science of what you do."

Omalu continues his involvement in education. He is a professor of pathology at University of California, Davis, and is president and co-founder of the Brain Injury Research Institute, NorthShore University Health System, in Illinois.

Omalu is even dabbling in a business venture, designing cuff links and neck ties. He plans to soon launch his business website Benmalu.com.

To outsiders, the county might seem like a murky place in the middle of nowhere.

But in his decision to stay, Omalu said he hopes people realize that the area harbors a pool of talent.

"We're not that bad after all," Omalu said. "People are coming to this city seeking talent. It's a small county. It's something to rejoice. I was blown away. I was humbled."